Updates and Newsletters: The main news stories from the major sources, selected, compiled, and occasionally commented on by Michael Novakhov ("Mike Nova") | Public RSS Feeds on the various topics of Global Security | Topics oriented news reviews

Two New York City women have been charged with trying to build a homemade bomb to launch a terrorist attack in the United States. A federal criminal complaint made public Thursday says Noelle Velentzas and Asia Siddiqui were arrested on charges of conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction. Prosecutors say undercover investigators determined the women were plotting to attack police, government or military targets based on their "violent jihadist beliefs." Authorities say the public was never in danger. The complaint alleges that the defendants possessed propane gas tanks and instructions on how to transform them into explosive devices. According to the New York Times,the complaint also says the women were in contact with members of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, and had viewed videos made by the so-called Islamic State militant group. Investigators say Velentzas repeatedly expressed interest in terrorist attacks committed in the United States, alleging she praised the 9/11 attacks and said being a martyr through a suicide attack guarantees entrance into heaven. Prosecutors also say Velentzas had been "obsessed with pressure cookers since the Boston Marathon attacks in 2013" and allegedly made jokes alluding to explosives after receiving one as a gift. If convicted, both defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison. Meanwhile, a U.S. citizen thought to have been a top al-Qaida operative is expected to face federal terrorism charges Thursday in New York. The Washington Post reported Thursday that Muhanad Mahmoud al Sarekh, 29, was detained by in Pakistan by Pakistani forces and flown to New York. He was expected to be arraigned in U.S. federal court in Brooklyn, the newspaper said. Some information from Reuters contributed to this report.

The United Nations Human Rights Committee is accusing Russia of violating the civil and political rights of people within its territory, as well as in Crimea and the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine. The committee notes Russia appears to have influence over the armed groups in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic. So, it argues Russia should exercise its control to ensure these groups implement the U.N. Covenant and protect the civil and political rights of people living in the territory. Independent Israeli expert Yuval Shany tells VOA the committee also has received information about discrimination and harassment of members of minorities and indigenous peoples, in particular Crimean Tatars. “That information both alleged discrimination of these individuals in access to public service on a daily basis...We took particular note of the exclusion of certain individuals who play a leadership role within that community from entering the territory of Crimea in order to enable that group to continue its social functions," said Shany. The committee also criticizes Russia’s failure to investigate human rights violations in the Chechen Republic. These include unlawful and extrajudicial killings, abductions, torture and enforced disappearances perpetrated by state agents. Additionally, the committee cites what it calls the reduced space for civil liberties within the Russian Federation, with laws that limit free speech, freedom of assembly and association. It says it has received consistent reports of arbitrary restrictions on the exercise of freedom of peaceful assembly, including violent and unjustified dispersal of protesters by police, arbitrary detentions and the imposition of harsh fines and prison sentences for expressing political views. Shany says the space for dissent and for political action appears to be under threat. He says journalists, human rights defenders, lawyers and opposition politicians are at risk of harassment, death threats, intimidation, physical violence and killing. “The picture is not completely clear in the sense that the State authorities have taken in some cases - they have taken action. We did address the Nemtsov killing and we did acknowledge that the State has made arrests very quickly after the murder. Our concerns actually were in going in the other direction perhaps because there were allegations of torture of the individuals who have been accused of the killings," he said. Shany says the Russian delegation appearing before the committee reported on the shooting death in 2006 of journalist Anna Politkovskaya and the trials that have taken place. Five men were convicted of her murder last year, but investigators have not determined who ordered the killing.

If Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl were convicted of “misbehavior before the enemy” a century ago, he might also have been subject to a humiliating send-off. His sword might be broken or his insignia ripped from his uniform in front of his unit.

The co-pilot of Germanwings Flight 9525 appears to have researched suicide methods and cockpit door security in the days before he flew the plane into the French Alps, killing 150 people, German prosecutors said Thursday.

Western officials say that Iran and the United States have agreed on the outlines of an understanding that would open the path to a final phase of nuclear negotiations but are in a dispute over how much to make public.

Israeli leaders lashed out at Thursday’s announcement of a framework agreement to curb Iran’s nuclear development with demands that the foreign powers negotiating the deal further roll back Tehran’s programs and warnings of possible military strikes on Iran if they don’t.

In an Executive Order issued yesterday, the White House established a new sanctions regime for “significant malicious cyber-enabled activities,” including harming or impeding critical infrastructure, disrupting the availability of computer networks (as in a DDOS attack), and misappropriation of trade secrets. The Order is the latest in a two-year-long series of executive branch actions trying to address cybersecurity threats to U.S. businesses andRead on Just Security »

Even though suspects in the murder of Kremlin critic Boris Nemtsov have been arrested, speculations on who is the mastermind behind the crime continue to swirl. According to Donald Jensen, resident fellow of the Center for Transatlantic Relations, there are clear signs of disintegration among Russia’s elites, as new, more radical armed groups seek their place in the system.

On March 8, two Chechens, a police officer and a security guard, were formally charged in a Moscow’s Basmanny District Court in connection with the shooting of Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov a week earlier. Three others were jailed as accomplices pending further investigation. A sixth man reportedly blew himself up with a hand grenade on Saturday night as police were closing in on his apartment in Grozny. A judge said the suspected policeman, Zaur Dadayev, confessed to involvement in the killing. The second suspect, Anzor Gubashev, pleaded not guilty. Despite these arrests, so far neither the court nor Russian law enforcement agencies have presented a coherent picture of the Nemtsov Affair that would explain the roles allegedly played by the suspects or their possible motives.

The main question Russians want answered is who ordered the assassination. Several versions of the murder have been circulating. Opposition leaders have accused the government of complicity, which it denied. Kremlin officials initially framed the assassination as a “provocation” to discredit Vladimir Putin and foment social discord. Before the arrests, Russia’s powerful Investigations Committee (SK) said it was looking into possible connections between Nemtsov’s death and Islamic extremism, the war in Ukraine, and Nemtsov’s varied personal and business relationships. The SK also said it would consider the possibility that Nemtsov was a “sacrificial victim,” implying that one of Nemtsov’s allies had killed him to smear the Kremlin. The chances for ever having a definitive answer to what happened are slim: in a series of high-profile killings over the past two decades (though none recently), regime critics were often the victims, but killers have rarely been identified.

The location of the murder, its timing, and its broader political context demonstrate that the hatred and violence Russia exported to Ukraine last year have returned home. Russian state propaganda has portrayed Kiev’s Maidan as a “fascist coup” and the freely elected Ukrainian government as a “junta” backed by Russia’s Western enemies. Kremlin-controlled media have called on Russian patriots to fight the enemy at home, identifying pro-Western liberals such as Nemtsov as traitors who constitute a “fifth column.” Six days before Nemtsov’s slaying, the Kremlin organized an “anti-Maidan” protest, the latest manifestation of a long, official campaign of intolerance and intimidation that drew thousands of people to Moscow. Once in the capital, marchers denounced Ukraine, the West, and liberals like Nemtsov.

As Putin maneuvers between domestic opposition and foreign pressure, he has opened the door to new, violent forces: the Kadyrov militia; fighters returning from Donbass; and the Combat Organization of Russian Nationalists (BORN), a terrorist organization specializing in political murders that was created and financed by Putin political strategist Vladislav Surkov. In recent months the Kremlin has openly patronized, “seeded and financed” reactionary biker gangs, pro-government extremists, and terrorists groups. Chechen warlord Ramzan Kadyrov, who blamed the shooting on Islamic extremists angered by Nemtsov’s condemnation of the Charlie Hebdo killings in Paris, leads a well-trained private army. He was installed by Putin to keep his home region under his thumb and has sworn an oath to defend the Russian president personally. Kadyrov’s men, numbering about 15,000, roam far beyond the North Caucasus and patrol Moscow with weapons and special security passes.

This system began to degenerate and evolve away from its usual correlation of forces when the conflict in Ukraine began last year. While society at large consolidated behind Putin’s war, disintegration sharply increased within the power system.

Putin may have ordered the killing personally, as some liberals have alleged. But Nemtsov was no threat to the regime. If Putin wanted to intimidate the opposition, there were better targets. The tragedy also happened at a time when Putin was cynically trying to project an image of international reasonableness to woo European Union members wavering on whether to prolong sanctions, and when a ceasefire in Ukraine seemed to be taking hold. But in the current frenzied climate of lawlessness, other explanations even more portentous for the future of the regime are possible.

First, Nemtsov could have been killed by trigger-happy extremists who believed they were advancing Russia’s interests by whacking an “enemy of the state.” Their motives for killing Nemtsov could be to derail the Minsk agreements, provoke more confrontation with the United States and Europe, or force Putin to be more aggressive in eastern Ukraine. In recent months, Putin has been increasingly criticized by “patriotic” forces for being too moderate. There is a significant amount of support for these groups among the siloviki.

Second, the shooting might have been carried out directly by mid- or lower-level officials. Russia’s domestic opposition and Western critics tend to see Putin and “the Kremlin” as one and the same, but this is not always the case. “The Kremlin” is far broader than Putin. It is a huge conglomerate of overlapping political and economic interests competing for influence and access to the president. Putin has the final word on important decisions, but initiatives can come from the center of this universe—Putin and his immediate lieutenants—or its periphery. Sometimes this conglomerate is beyond the control of Putin and his immediate entourage, who can also be hostages of these forces.

This system began to degenerate and evolve away from its usual correlation of forces when the conflict in Ukraine began last year. While society at large consolidated behind Putin’s war, disintegration sharply increased within the power system. The so-called liberal oligarchs lost influence and money due to sanctions and lower oil prices. The military and siloviki grew more important. New, armed groups such as BORN, unhappy with the pace of Putin’s counterrevolutionary movement (and in some cases with Putin himself), sought their place in the system.

For now, the Kremlin is predictably using Nemtsov’s death for its own purposes. Regime critics were outraged on March 9 when Putin gave an award to Ramzan Kadyrov a day after the Chechen strongman hailed Zaur Dadayev, one of the accused killers, as “a true patriot.” A Kremlin spokesman said the timing of the award was long-planned. Critics also saw the award as a sign of official endorsement of Kadyrov’s claim that Nemtsov’s accused killer was motivated by anger at the opposition leader’s defense of the French cartoonists. “Our worst fears are being realized,” Nemtsov’s ally Ilya Yashin wrote. “A scapegoat will be held responsible for the crime and those who really ordered it—within the government—will remain free.” But it also seems that some entities close to the Kremlin are ashamed by the absurdity and boldness of Nemtsov’s assassination: Kremlin-controlled television channels did not air a single report about Putin decorating Kadyrov, despite their penchant for boosting everything the Kremlin leader does.

No matter who killed Nemtsov, Russia’s elites are no doubt wondering if the same thing could happen to them. Putin’s presence at the top of the pyramid of power has long seemed to guarantee their physical safety, their property, and their freedom. This has been a major reason that Putin has remained in power. The elites know they cannot stand up to the siloviki and groups such as BORN. But it is delusional to believe that these extremists, who bore the responsibility for a dirty war and who provided propaganda and organizational support for that conflict, can be easily managed. They want not only their share of power but also to see the realization of their dreams. In their opinion, all of Russia should become Donbass. Anyone who is against this is their opponent.

Lufthansa is facing tough questions about why it hired a pilot it knew had severe depression. Also, NYPD investigates a detective for a road rage rant. All that and all that matters in today's Eye Opener. Your world in 90 seconds.

The unprecedented event called Dragoon Ride will end Wednesday as soldiers and their Strykers roll into Vilseck, Germany, after a 1,900-kilometer road march and nearly two weeks maneuvering back from missions in Eastern European countries.

Modest improvements to the defense spending climate, buoyed by strong commercial sales, creates a stable environment in the defense sector, the credit rating agency Moody's said in its monthly outlook for the global aerospace and defense industry published Wednesday.

Estonia's Ministry of Defense has signed an agreement with Raytheon to advance defense industry partnerships and pursue collaborative initiatives to further enhance Estonia's cyber defense capabilities

The Ground-based Midcourse Defense system located in California and Alaska protects the American homeland from a limited long-range ballistic missile attack. However, there is no comparable system on the East Coast.

As Congress begins its review of the president's fiscal 2016 budget, I recently witnessed a welcome sign of interest from congressional staffers who attended a standing room-only, roundtable discussion on missile defense. The questions and discussion were insightful, and brought clarity to the Missile Defense Agency's (MDA's) sound strategy to defend against a rapidly evolving missile threat.

Former workers tell how hundreds of bloggers are paid to flood forums and social networks at home and abroad with anti-western and pro-Kremlin comments

Just after 9pm each day, a long line of workers files out of 55 Savushkina Street, a modern four-storey office complex with a small sign outside that reads “Business centre”. Having spent 12 hours in the building, the workers are replaced by another large group, who will work through the night.

The nondescript building has been identified as the headquarters of Russia’s “troll army”, where hundreds of paid bloggers work round the clock to flood Russian internet forums, social networks and the comments sections of western publications with remarks praising the president, Vladimir Putin, and raging at the depravity and injustice of the west.

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